


Pumpkins for my Punkin

by asymmetricalJester



Series: Caffeinated Kisses [3]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: M/M, Protective Bucky Barnes, Pumpkins, fall - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-20
Updated: 2014-10-20
Packaged: 2018-02-21 23:08:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2485598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/asymmetricalJester/pseuds/asymmetricalJester
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve is getting really tired of everyone treating him like he's made of glass.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Pumpkins for my Punkin

**Author's Note:**

> Warning for a mention of sexual abuse towards the end of the fic
> 
> We'll go into more detail with that later on because they ARE gonna have to talk about it eventually. 
> 
> I mostly needed more Howling Commandos love. Next one I do for this AU will probably be the Halloween Party ouo 
> 
> As always I love you guys and your comments give me life <3

Fall typically gave Steve mixed feelings and this year was no exception. On the one hand the leaves changed colours and the cool air meant Steve could wear cardigans and scarves and not stick out like a sore thumb. Halloween was a pretty amazing Holiday too and he was pretty fond of Thanksgiving, even with his mother’s declining health. Every year she got a little worse so he tried to hold onto those cold weather holidays.

On the other hand, his own health tended to decline pretty rapidly. He had gotten pneumonia a few years in a row, and if it wasn’t that it was bronchitis or a string of bad colds or a sinus infection. Natasha mother henned him no matter what season it was but it got even worse when it started to get cold. She forced him to bundle up, shoved teas and soups at him, and always made sure he had his medicine even if he couldn’t afford it.

He was hoping that this year would be different now that he was seeing Bucky but if anything it was worse. Once Bucky found out how many physical issues Steve actually had he joined Natasha in the mother henning. It drove him up a wall.

It wasn’t like he didn’t appreciate their concern about his health, he just hated being treated like he was made of glass. The very few times he and Bucky had gone any farther than just kissing the other boy had stopped out of fear of hurting Steve. At least, that was his claim. 

Steve had a sneaking suspicion Bucky was putting it off for some other reason but he had yet to say what and Steve didn’t like to pry. If Bucky wanted him to know he’d tell him, otherwise it wasn’t worth bothering him about. 

He just wished he’d admit that it was him and not how frail he found Steve. It was a pretty big blow to his pride and he hated it. 

The day after Peggy flew back to England Steve caught a cold. It wasn’t a bad one, barely enough for him to register but Bucky and Natasha were still fretting. Even Sam was doing it, although he was a lot more subtle than they were.

“Man, it’s just a tiny cold now. But with how your body hates you it could totally escalate into something awful! Sides, Halloween is in a few days and you know how Bucky’s looking forward to that party at his Fraternity. He wants you to be well enough to go and enjoy yourself,” Sam tried, grinning at the scrawny blonde man who was piled under several blankets and hoodies. 

“I get that Sam but It’s so… It’s so damn frustrating! I’m not a little kid, I can handle a stupid cold! I’ll be fine by the party! I’m just so sick of being treated like this all the time. I’m even getting tired of Nat doing it,” he grouched, pouting. 

Sam let out a long suffering sigh and stood up. “I get it man, I do. I’ll talk to her about maybe backing off, but man, you gotta talk to Bucky about it. Tell him how you’re feeling. If you want this relationship to work you need to be honest,” he said wisely.

Steve squinted at him and scrunched up his face. “Is that your psych degree at work?” he grumbled, pouting some more. Sam just laughed and ruffled Steve’s hair.

“Get out of my damn dorm Steve, go see your boyfriend for cheesy ass scary movies and cider like you two have been planning for weeks,” he said, sounding stern but Steve knew from the amused look on his face that he was joking around.

Steve made another face and tossed off the many blankets, bundling up further before grabbing his backpack, stuffed to the brim with movies, and making his way to Bucky’s place. 

&

He showed up to the spacious house, feeling a slight tinge of envy directed at the boys living there. He’d never trade his dorm room with Sam but he figured it must be nice to have a real kitchen and all that. 

He was greeted at the door by the lumbering form of Tim Dugan. Steve still had trouble calling the hulking man Dum Dum but that was his nickname of choice. Apparently he and Bucky had been friends for ages, going back as far as he and Natasha did. 

He made his way inside, listening to Dum Dum chatter on about this and that with an amused grin. He loved these guys, they were Bucky’s brothers and they were the nicest people Steve had ever met. He’d been apprehensive at first, after all his appearance tended to invoke jokes and harassment but these guys had just accepted them as one of their own without any hesitation. 

He waved at Mortia who was arguing with Dernier over something, he’d missed far too much of the conversation to understand what they were going on about. They were all sitting on the floor in front of the TV, Friday the 13th playing but going largely unnoticed. There were a bunch of pumpkins on the floor and Bucky was sitting in front of the biggest one, a huge grin plastered on his face. “Stevie! We’re carving pumpkins and watching Halloween movies!” he said excitedly, practically vibrating with happiness. 

Steve laughed and shed a few layers of sweaters before dropping his backpack next to the DVD player. “Good thing I brought my collection,” he said, winking before dropping into Bucky’s lap. 

All in all it was a fun afternoon. Bucky hollowed out two different pumpkins and Steve carved them. They were the nicest out of the bunch, to with Dum Dum accused Bucky of cheating because Steve was an art major and that couldn’t possibly be fair. 

They gorged themselves on pizza and caramel apples after the pumpkins were done and then they all piled up in front of the TV to watch more movies. Bucky didn’t mention Steve’s poor health once the entire evening and he was never more grateful. 

&

He spent that night wrapped up in Bucky’s arms, in just their boxers because Tony was staying in Pepper’s dorm that night so they had the room to themselves. They still didn’t get farther than kissing but when Bucky broke away he gave Steve a sad smile. “You know it’s not anything to do with you right?” he asked, voice quiet.

Steve let out a slow sigh. “It’s hard to know that when you’ve always cited not wanting to hurt me as an excuse. You don’t have to tell me why just… Stop treating me like I’m breakable. I’ve been through a lot, I can get through a stupid cold or have sex you know.”

Bucky pressed a small kiss to Steve’s collar bone and sighed against his skin. “I do have to tell you though, it’s not fair to you if I don’t. Sex kinda… Well it makes me nervous. I used to have an abusive boyfriend who used it against me all the time so it’s still kinda hard for me. I’m getting there though, it’s not you I promise,” he mumbled, looking up into Steve’s concerned eyes.

The scrawny blonde sighed and ran his fingers through Bucky’s hair. “I get it Buck. You don’t have to tell me exactly what happened if you’re not comfortable with it, I’m glad you were honest though. I get that I’m pretty frail looking but it’s kind of a blow to my pride when my friends and boyfriend handle me like I’m breakable,” he muttered, glancing away and blushing.

Bucky propped himself up and took Steves face in his hands. “Hey, stop that. I know you’re not breakable I just… You mean a lot to me Steve. Nat told me about the time you almost died because a little cold turned into pneumonia and, fuck, I’m too selfish to risk losing you like that. I’ll back off though, okay?” His voice was firm and his gaze was intense. It sent a shiver down Steve’s spine.

Steve could only nod, chewing on his lower lip as he locked eyes with Bucky. They stayed that way for a while, gazing into each others eyes before Bucky broke into a smile and lay back down so he could spoon Steve. 

“Dum Dum’s the one who dragged me out of the relationship. We’d been friends for years at the time, but we were never super close until one day I came to class covered in bruises. He dragged me to meet the others later that day, it was before I joined. They didn’t judge me, didn’t pry. Eventually I told them what was going on and Dum Dum promise me they’d help me get out. They used to argue a lot but I guess they had a common cause in helping me out? Now they’re all best buddies. I pledged for Rush the very next fall ‘cause of them,” he said quietly, voice nostalgic. 

Steve blinked a few times. He hadn’t known about any of this. Bucky had never told him how he met all these guys or why he joined this fraternity out of all the ones on campus. He understood though and it made his heart swell with affection for Bucky’s friends. “They really like you Stevie. You’ve been so good for me, I’m not really surprised that they’re all so protective of you,” he whispered, lips ghosting over the back of Steve’s neck. It made him shiver and Bucky pulled him closer to his chest. 

“Thanks for telling me all of that Bucky. I mean it. I have a lot more respect for them than I did before,” Steve said, voice quiet and contemplative. 

The conversation ended after that, both boys falling silent and slowly drifting to sleep. Steve was pretty sure he’d wait forever if Bucky wanted him to.


End file.
